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2017 Land Rover Discovery Shown Ahead of L.A. Auto Show

The 2017 Land Rover Discovery became a gift that arrived early at a Nov. 11 media event in Venice, Calif. that paired the luxury SUV with coconut water, kale salad, and a celebrity surfer. The event came several days before Land Rover shows the vehicle for the first time in North America at the Los Angeles Auto Show.

As Land Rover unveiled its 2017 Discovery to automotive journalists, surfer Laird Hamilton and volleyball player Gabby Reece stood by to describe their day of testing the vehicle that replaces the Land Rover LR4 with a splash.

The 2017 Discovery arrives at about the same length — detailed specifications are forthcoming — but sheds 1,000 pounds by incorporating extensive aluminum body panels. The supercharged 3.0L V-6 gasoline engine carries over with the ZF 8-speed transmission, and the vehicle adds a 3.0L V-6 diesel-powered model.

The gasoline model can tow 8,201 pounds, while the diesel model can tow 7,716 pounds.

Photo of 2017 Land Rover Discovery HSE by Paul Clinton.

Body styling has been significantly reworked to give the vehicle more of a low-slung front end, and a legacy infotainment system has been replaced with the InControl Touch Pro that can be paired with an 8- or 12-inch touch screen. Land Rover added a new navigation system to the package.

Land Rover is also offering a connected seating configuration system known as Intelligent Seat Fold that allows users to configure the three-row SUV in at least six different ways to accommodate up to seven people and regular or elongated cargo.

When it goes on sale around June, the Discovery will arrive in three trim grades, including SE, HSE, and HSE Lux. The seating system is available on the HSE Lux model. The base model will retail for $49,990.

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